Max Steel: Turbo-Charged is the first movie of the 2017 duology and sixth movie overall of Max Steel. Alongside its successor, Turbo-Warriors, it is one of the two films animated by Film Roman Baja J.V. following Arc Productions' bankruptcy. It was written by Rob David, Lloyd Goldfine and Michael Ryan and directed by Lloyd Goldfine. It aired March 18 on Latin America.
To prevent Terrorax and his sinister society of techno super villains from taking over the world, Max Steel must learn to master an all-new, powerful form of T.U.R.B.O. energy!
Plot[]
Terrorax approaches Max.
Max and his team invade an abandoned warehouse to rescue hostages, only to find it completely abandoned. Suddenly, several energy cubes start to emerge from the ground, quickly surrounding the group. They attempt to fend them off, but their T.U.R.B.O. energy are drained. As a result, Max and the group faint. Some time later, a restrained Max awakens in a white room, where he is approached by a mysterious masked individual who refuses to reveal his name. Using a machine, the villain unlinks Steel from Max and begins to torture him while claiming that McGrath did not grasp the boundless possibilities of his T.U.R.B.O. powers. After he successfully obtain samples of Max's energy, he commands his allies to electrocute Team Turbo. Upon seeing his friends hurt, Max begins to generate large quantities of T.U.R.B.O. energy, nearly going super nova. After releasing an energy shockwave, the electronic apparels begin to malfunction, causing the entire place to explode.
Max trains his new power.
An unconscious Max is left in Copper Canyon's mountains. Max is awakened by a calf, getting scared and nearly falling from a cliff. He punches through the rocks of the mountains, finding it strange that he was able to do so. He is contacted by Steel, who sends him his coordinates. After reaching the Ultralink and freeing him from the rubble, the two try to link, but fail. They head to Team Turbo's headquarters, where Rayne, Alex and a damaged C.Y.T.R.O. were waiting for them. After finding the entrance to their base, Max begins to train his new powers. Meanwhile, the masked villain returned to his hideout, where he contacts Nexus and his cloaked allies, who were concerned about him potentially failing them. The villain inserts the T.U.R.B.O. energy sample in a machine, transforming it into "Terror energy". He requests Nexus' permission to carry on with their plans, of which he allows.
Max and Steel talk.
Meanwhile, Max fights against holographical versions of the Elementors on a beach. He initially has difficulties, as McGrath was still behaving like he was bonded to Steel. The Ultralink interrupts the training session to inform Max that, the more energy he generated, the stronger he would be. With this new information in mind, Max successfully defeats the Elementors. He later talks with Steel, stating that he was beginning to get used to his new power. Curious, he asks Steel why he began to generate a new variation of T.U.R.B.O. energy, of which he reveals that it was due to him going far beyond his limits during his encounter with the masked villain. The Ultralink reveals that he would need to redesign Alex, Rayne and C.Y.T.R.O.'s suits to accommodate McGrath's new powers, as well as the fact he was unable to control it due to how potent it was. Max comforts him, stating that they would always be a team, together or not. Alex and Rayne approach the two to inform that Martinez seemingly had found the man behind the trap at the warehouse: Dr. Prometheus Halifax, the founder of Halifax Industries.
Max and Team Turbo's new armors.
Steel introduces the group to "Steel-Tek", gifting them with new Connect-Tek armors, as well as the Cyclo-Spin Bike for Max and a motorcycle for Alex. The heroes suit up and head to the headquarters of Halifax Industries, where the group splits up to gather information. C.Y.T.R.O. and Tempestra head to the top of the tower and hack into the systems of the organization, but they are quickly found by the security. As a result, a laser cage is formed around them, slowly drawing nearer. Meanwhile, Max and La Fiera end up in a reunion, where Prometheus reveals that he already knew that they were there. A machine suits him up and puts on his mask, revealing that he was the one responsible for "stealing" Max's energy. Shortly after, the people on the reunion turn around to Max and La Fiera, revealing to be a part of the "Nexus", a secret organization. Prometheus injects Terror energy into himself, transforming into a monster and assuming the identity of Terrorax.
Max fights Terrorax.
Meanwhile, Tempestra goes Turbo Ice Storm and uses her ice rays to slow down the laser cage, but it doesn't works. In the mean time, Max and La Fiera fight against Terrorax, who easily overpowers the heroic duo. After Alex is knocked out, Max and Terrorax clash directly, but McGrath is thrown across the battlefield. A group of Nexus agents gather around the two as Terrorax prepares to kill them. Suddenly, the floor fall on the top of the villain, revealing to be Tempestra and C.Y.T.R.O., who had managed to escape from the laser cage. Terrorax emerges from the rubble, capturing Tempestra with her hands and draining her energy until she returns to her base mode. C.Y.T.R.O. tries to strike back, but his systems are infected by Terror energy, causing a large explosion that throws him across the room, breaking the walls of the building and almost hitting a truck nearby. The driver exits his vehicle, talking about Copper Canyon's "super battles". After Max is also hurled next to him, McGrath tells him to get to safety. La Fiera and Tempestra retreat while Terrorax chases after them. He spots Max, who was left in a weakened state after their battle, and humiliates him. While Alex and Rayne distract him by throwing trash at him, Max lifts the truck and throws it at Terrorax. With the villain distracted, McGrath and his team escape.
Team Terror is activated.
Later, the Nexus legion hack technological devices around the world to warn about their plans of total world domination. As the transmission ends, Max comments with his team what Terrorax had done to C.Y.T.R.O., who had been deactivated following their last battle against the villain. Steel reveals that Prometheus' Terror energy destabilizes technology in a molecular level, using as an example Max's Turbo Gauntlets, which he used in his fight against Terrorax. McGrath accidentally causes his powers to reconstitute the device, surprising the entire group. Meanwhile, Terrorax contacts Nexus, who reprimands him for underestimating Max Steel's tenacity. In response, Prometheus introduces three assassins, Night Howl, Snare and Monstro, to deal with Max and his team. Dubbing them as "Team Terror", Terrorax empowers them with Terror energy, awakening them from their stasis.
Terrorax contacts Team Turbo.
Meanwhile, Max uses his T.U.R.B.O. energy to bring back C.Y.T.R.O.. After doing so, Max faints. Waking up hours later, Steel reveals that he had upgraded their Steel-Tek technology and that he had found three electro-magnetic Terror energy pulse emitters located in three specific locations. Max and his team split up to find the devices, but are unable to discover them. They are contacted by Terrorax, who reveals he had relocated the emitters but had left "consolation prizes" — Team Terror. C.Y.T.R.O. and Tempestra fight against Monstro, who swarms them with his malformed clones. The robot activates Turbo Drill Mode and uses his powers to bury Monstro alive. La Fiera fights Snare, activating his new Turbo Raptor Mode to deactivate the robot. Max, meanwhile, fights against Night Howl, using several of his weapons to defeat the creature, eventually trapping him in rubble. After successfully defeating Team Terror, Steel contacts Max and his team, revealing that he had pinned down the location of Terrorax's headquarters.
Terrorax deactivates Copper Canyon's technology.
Max and Team Turbo head to Terrorax's headquarters, where he attacks them using a Terror energy ray. Max defends them using a Turbo Shield, angering the villain, who claimed that his energy should have eaten Steel-Tek alive. Max and his team go Turbo and attack Terrorax together, who releases a shockwave to fend them off. He sends out Team Terror to distract them, while he proceeds with his plans of deactivating technology on Copper Canyon. La Fiera fights Night Howl and eventually manages to defeat them after kicking him into the wall, knocking him out. C.Y.T.R.O. is temporarily taken out after stepping in a landmine. Tempestra shoots an ice ray at the robot, who dodges her attack and traps her with an energy net. He launches a saw at Tempestra, who freezes it and sends it back to him, hitting the robot's shoulder and deactivating him. She then releases mist on the battlefield to assist Max in his battle against Monstro. After slashing the creature in pieces, Max and his team temporarily knock out Terrorax, who had succeeded in deactivating Copper Canyon's technology.
Terrorax's defeat.
Terrorax recovers however, and attacks Team Turbo. They distract him while Max heads to the control panel and uses his green T.U.R.B.O. energy to restore the power of Copper Canyon. After realizing that his plans were foiled, Terrorax releases a powerful shockwave that knock out Team Turbo. Projecting a drill on his chest, Terrorax uses his axe to attract Max to him and restrains him with his arms while he mocks him. McGrath concentrates and creates Turbo Armor Mode, gaining the upper arm in the battle. After seemingly killing Terrorax, his headquarters begin to crumble. Team Turbo rescues an unconscious Team Terror and capture Prometheus' Terror energy generator. As they head back to their base, Alex wonders if it is the last time they dealt with the Nexus, of which Max doesn't thinks so. Despite this, McGrath remains optmistic about the future, commenting about his new power's boundless possibilities.
Terrorax's weakened state.
Meanwhile, Terrorax's weakened body was recovered by Nexus agents. Nexus himself sees Prometheus' emaciated body, claiming that the initial Terror energy tests did not went well. Terrorax awakens and states that he would rise again, and, the next time he faces Max Steel, there would be a war.
While torturing Max, Terrorax shows past recordings of McGrath fighting against the Elementors, Toxzon and Mortum, which happened in Team Turbo and Team Turbo Fusion-Tek.
Max and Steel are permanently separated thanks to Terrorax's efforts. The two are unable to link due to how potent McGrath's new T.U.R.B.O. energy is, but Steel is able to feed on small portions of his power to stay alive.
Due to his encounter with Terrorax, Max begins to generate a green-colored version of his T.U.R.B.O. energy, which he initially has trouble adapting to.
Turbo-Charged's toy line was released on the first half of 2017. The boxes featured the logo of the film, a blue coloration on its front and sides, and an illustration of Max wearing his Base mode with a sword on the right side.
In October 2017, Mattel had confirmed its presence on the 2016 edition of the Comic-Con Experience event on São Paulo, Brazil.[1] The toy line was showcased on the event, having an exclusive stand for some of the Turbo-Charged and Turbo Missions toys. There was a person dressed as Max Steel (wearing his new uniform) and the Extreme Climb Max Steel featuring a course of 18 meters for kids to cross.
Production[]
Several concept art pieces created by Condor Studios reveal that the idea of a green T.U.R.B.O. energy was considered as early as 2015.[2]
In October 12, 2016, Mattel announced its 2017 content slate, featuring two new movies for Max Steel: Turbo-Charged and Turbo-Warriors.[3]
In November 23, 2016 it was announced that Film Roman and Boxel Studios had partnered to form Roman Baja JV.[4] Current client productions featured Mattel's Max Steel. The film began to be animated starting late 2016.[5]
In January 11, the designer responsible for the new logo of the film posted images featuring its design process. However, he later on removed as he wasn't allowed to share it yet.
In February 2017, it was announced that Turbo-Charged would officially air on the Latin American Cartoon Network in March 15. However, due to unknown reasons, the movie was delayed.
In early March, the first trailer of the film was released on the series' official website. It featured the new villain Terrorax and his minions, Max's new modes and vehicles, his new green T.U.R.B.O. energy and Team Turbo's new Turbo Modes. Initially, the trailer was only available in English in all versions of the website, with the notable change being the logo, which was translated according to the respective language of the site. Some time later, the trailers were properly dubbed and released.
The movie officially aired on Latin America on March 18, 2017.
In November 16, 2017, the film was split in 13 parts and was uploaded by the official YouTube channel in Portuguese and Spanish. In December 11, 2017, the entire film was uploaded by Cartoon Network's official YouTube channel, available both in Portuguese and Spanish languages.
At some point in 2020, the film was released at Sky Store[6] and Showmax[7].
In February 2021, the film was released on Amazon Prime.[8]
Max Steel: Turbo-Charged's gallery can be seen here.
Trivia[]
The movie was released March 18, 2017, which is exactly one year after the debut of Team Turbo.
N-Tek does not appear in this movie. Despite no explanation being given, it is possible that the agency ceased to exist due to the events of Team Turbo thanks to professor Mortum's efforts.
The concept of Max's green T.U.R.B.O. energy was inspired by his classic counterpart, who was most commonly associated with the green color. Terrorax, the main antagonist of the movie, may have been inspired by the classic Max Steel villain Psycho.
The opening scene of the movie, in which Max is tortured by Terrorax, could have been inspired by a scene from Max Steel: Endangered Species, in which Psycho tortures Max to obtain a sample of his Turbo powers.
Lord Nexus, who was featured on the credits of Team Turbo, properly debuts in the film as the man behind the secret society of super villains.
The logo animation sequence references the change of blue to green T.U.R.B.O. energy. When the logo is about to hit the screen, it features blue coloring on the hexagons and lettering. As it fully forms, the background and colored parts of the logo become green.
The storyboards feature several differences compared to the final product.
Terrorax featured large, spherical eyes and a large mouth filled with fangs. His axe was a part of his right arm, contrary to the final product in which it is used as a separate weapon.[5]
Night Howl's design was more human-like and he featured a different design for his head, having horned saliences sprouting from his forehead and cheeks and a sphere on the forehead.[5] While this design ultimately went unused, Night Howl's action figure features a similar appearance.
A circle of Nexus agents were present after Max and Alex's defeat during their first fight against Terrorax, rather than a few.[5]
The Pantheon, which plays a large role in the following film, makes a cameo appearance at the end of the movie.
Turbo-Charged's logo was translated for other languages, including Spanish and Portuguese.
Goofs[]
In the initial sequence of the film, Max's model features Steel linked to his chest, even when he is not.
During the white room sequence, Team Turbo are trapped inside white containers. In the first shots, the white piece of their armors are on the left side of their bodies rather than the right. In the next shots, this was fixed.
C.Y.T.R.O.'s visor sometimes doesn't lights up when he talks.
There are few instances where the glowing green parts on Max's armor are either missing texture or opaque.
When the Nexus agents start glorifying the Terror Energy and the camera zooms out, there is a texture missing on La Fiera's right leg.
After Prometheus mutates, he and several Nexus agents approach Max and Alex. There is a shot of the entire room showing this happening, in which the two are shown to be unmasked despite being masked during the entire scene.
Monstro's eyes are opened while Terrorax presents him and the other members of Team Terror to lord Nexus. His eyes are closed (and then are opened) when he is charged with Terror energy.
During Snare and La Fiera's fight, there is a shot of the back of his head, in which the top of his head is missing texture.
Sometimes, both of La Fiera's Turbo Raptor Mode's shoulder pads are white rather than one being white and other being red.
After Alex defeats Snare, he leaves via Turbo Eagle Mode. The texture of his right wing is missing.
During Team Turbo's invasion in Terrorax's headquarters, Max projects a Turbo Shield to protect him and his team from the villain's Terror energy wave. After the shield dissipates, the aspect ratio of the screen changes in one shot.
When Team Terror show up in the second and last fight against Max and his team, Snare's blasters suddenly appear on his arm.
In the scene where the camera rotates while Night Howl and La Fiera are fighting, the red eyes of Night Howl's model are missing.
During Snare and C.Y.T.R.O.'s fight, he launches a landmine from his chest. The electric current on his back antennas is missing.
During Snare and Tempestra's fight, he shoots a saw at her. She sends it back to him, with the saw being positioned horizontally. In the next shots, however, it is shown to be positioned vertically. Snare falls backwards, but in the next shot, he appears falling to the right side.
When Max is about to reach the Terror energy generator, a Nexus agent using a gun attacks him. His arm pass through his coat.
While Team Turbo were evacuating Terrorax's headquarters, the texture of the visor of Tempestra's Turbo Ice Storm Mode is missing.
.png){kind=link}
